A former Avalon police officer is being held in the Allegheny County Jail after, police said, he knocked out a suspect's tooth and broke his jaw.

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According to the criminal complaint, Walter Johnson was still a police officer in April when he arrested a man accused of attacking another officer on Cleveland Avenue and took him to the jail.

Once at the police station, Johnson pushed the man into the cell with so much force that the man was lifted off the ground and his head slammed into the wall, causing "dislocated fractures" to his jaw and loose teeth, according to the complaint.

Another officer came in and found the man in a pool of blood, and doctors found a tooth lodged in the man's airway, according to the complaint.

Neighbors told Channel 4 Action News’ Paul Van Osdol they saw Johnson throw the man into a wall as he took him into the police station.

"He was shoving him, pulling him, throwing him around. (He) slammed him up against the door and everything," said Tonya Thompson.

She told Van Osdol an ambulance arrived about 30 minutes later and the man was brought out of the station on a stretcher.

"He did look like he was dead. He wasn't responsive. He wasn't moving," said Thompson. "When they took the pillowcase off his face, he was full of blood everywhere on his face."

Thompson said she overheard Johnson say he knocked the man's teeth out, and also noticed blood on his hands.

"He came out like this, saying, 'He ain't got no teeth in his mouth now,' like bragging about it. Like he's some big guy," said Thompson.

"Nobody around here liked that guy because he let his badge go to his head and you shouldn't do that," said Bobby Thompson.

Avalon's police chief said the incident came to light after Johnson was fired in June for violating multiple policies, but declined to go into further detail.

Johnson was arrested Wednesday night and charged with aggravated assault and official oppression. He was released on his own recognizance while he awaits an Aug. 30 hearing before District Judge Tara Smith.